House of Jeszenszky

Jesenský or Jeszenszky (also Jessensky, Jessinsky, Jessensky de Gross Jessen) were a family of old Hungarian nobility of Slovak origin.

In 1274, Andrew gained nobility by serving king Ladislaus IV of Hungary bravely, and got the village of Jeszent in Túróc (Slovak: Turiec) county, and its surroundings as a gift.^[1] From that time, the family called herself as Jeszentsky ("of Jeszent"), which later transformed into Jeszenszky (Jesenský). Ladislaus Jesenský died in 1526 during the catastrophic Battle of Mohács. Subsequently, all Jesenský property was confiscated by the advancing Osmans, so brothers Melchior, Lorenz and Balthasar Jesenský moved to Silesia (then part of the Crown of Bohemia) and lived in Wrocław and Świdnica from 1541 onward. Balthasar's son was Ján Jesenský, known as Jan Jesenius, famous scientist and politician who lived and died in Prague, Bohemia.

Branches of family are still living in Slovakia, Czechia, Hungary and the United States.

Important family members:

• Jan Jesenius (1566–1621), Bohemian physician, philosopher and politician, rector of Charles University in Prague
• Růžena Jesenská (1863–1940), Czech novelist
• Jan Jesenský (1870–1947), Czech scientist, professor of Charles University
• Janko Jesenský (1874–1945), Slovak poet, prose writer and translator
• Milena Jesenská (1896–1944), Czech journalist and translator, friend of Franz Kafka
• Jan Jesenský, Jr. (1904–1942), Czech scientist, assistant professor of Charles University
• Ferenc Jeszenszky (1905–1990), Hungarian economist, during 1949–52 was a president of Hungarian National Bank in Budapest
• Géza Jeszenszky (1941–), Hungarian politician, in 1990–94 foreign minister of Hungary
• James Jesensky (1970–), American computer scientist

References

1. ^ Short family history of Jan Jesenius

Sources

• Jan Jesenius and his family's short bio (Hungarian)